Fever
by Clarobell
Summary: REVISED & REPOSTED! ZoLu. A normal day on the Going merry turns nasty when Luffy falls sick and Chopper can't understand why. The crew are worried for their captain, especially Zoro. What's wrong and why might and old woman be able to help?
1. What's Wrong With You?

**Fever**

**Disclaimer: Don't own it!**

**Chapter 1: What's Wrong With You?**

**This is the new and improved fever! Yay me! I found time to revise it! Hope it's a better than the original! It started out as a game between my friend wishing-for-a-zolo-plushie and escalated into a fic so half the credit goes to her.**

It was just a regular old day on the Going Merry. The sun was shining, the sky was blue, the ocean was bluer and it seemed that nothing could possibly go wrong.

Roronoa Zororeleased a silent contented sigh feeling for once that nothing could go wrong. Sanji was too busy crooning over the girls to fight with him, there were no injuries for Chopper to tend with, Usopp was busy repairing random areas of Merry and the rest of the crew were enjoying the calm moment. It seemed even their captain was enjoying the heat, resting against the rail of Merry asleep.

With another silent sigh, Zoro found himself drifting off to sleep, but a light wheezing sound was keeping him from drifting off. He shifted slightly onto his side, arm resting on the three swords by his side and closed his eyes a little tighter. Today _would _be a perfect day … if only that wheezing would stop!

The swordsman cracked one eye open and grumpily gazed around the ship searching for the noise. His eyes rested on his captain and narrowed. The noise was definitely coming from him. With a small grunt he hefted himself to his feet and moved to sit beside the snoozing boy.

Luffy's hat was covering his face so Zoro tipped it back a little and his eyes narrowed further noticing how flushed his captain's cheeks were. It was pretty hot today, and it could have just been because of the heat, but to be safe he wanted to check anyway. He nudged the boy softly, but got no response and so tried again.

"Oi, Luffy" he whispered "You okay?"

Luffy awoke with a grunt.

"What? Huh? Yeah I'm fine... just snoozin'..." and Luffy's eyes fluttered closed again. Zoro watched him for a minute or two and when the noise didn't return, decided to go back to sleep himself; then was just dozing off himself when that wheezing started again.

Zoro's eyes snapped open and he pushed Luffy's hat from his head, leaving it to fall behind him, still safely attached to the string around his neck. He rested his arm on the railing of the ship and scanned every inch of the boy in front of him with narrowed eyes.

Nami chose that moment to look up from the book she had been reading and glance around the deck, curious as to why there was such a lack of noise and interruption. She raised a delicate eyebrow as her eyes rested on Zoro and Luffy. It almost looked like … Zoro was going to kiss the sleeping boy.

A wicked smirk crossed the navigator's features and she quickly whipped out the silent camera she had bought at the last island and discretely as possible, snapped a few shots of the two. With her job done, she closed her book and stood up from the chair she had been resting in, making her way to the girls cabin, leaving the two to do whatever they wanted.

Zoro however, through his intense study of his captain had determined that Luffy was not as 'fine' as he had claimed to be. A thin layer of sweat coated his body and though it was slight, with each wheezing breath he was taking, the boy shuddered. He moved away from his sleeping Captain and scanned the deck for their little reindeer doctor, but found no trace of him.

"Damn it" He growled before yelling "Chopper!"

The little reindeer appeared from behind the mast. He had obviously been sleeping too, from the ruffled look of his fur.

"What's up?" he asked curiously as he padded over to the two

Zoro pointed at Luffy, who was still fast asleep.

"Something's wrong with him." he said.

Chopper's eyes narrowed and he quickly turned, rushing back to the mast to retrieve his medical equipment (which he had been examining before falling asleep) and then trotting back to Zoro and Luffy.

"I'll take a look" he stated, quickly opening the bag and pulling out various utensils. Zoro watched nervously (though of course he'd never tell anybody that) as Chopper examined his captain and leaned back against the railing of the ship.

Sanji, who had been on his way back to the kitchen after delivering Nami-swan her afternoon mikan pie, spotted the little reindeer checking Luffy and made his way over.

"Oi, Marimo" he asked "What's up with Luffy?"

"If I knew do you think Chopper would be here?" Zoro snapped back, adding on a 'dumb blonde' under his breath for good measure

Sanji ground his teeth down on his cigarette and angrily blew out a stream of smoke, he opened his mouth to reply, but before he had the chance, Chopper spoke up.

"Could you please keep that smoke away from Luffy, Sanji?" he said in a clipped tone "He's having slight breathing troubles as it is"

Sanji flicked the cigarette away into the ocean and moved to lean against the mast.

"Oi shitty cook, shouldn't you be making lunch or something?"

"Lunch can wait until I hear what's wrong with him" Sanji replied offhandedly "After all, he may need some type of special food"

It was a cover up and Zoro knew it, but he decided to keep quiet for once. Sanji wouldn't make fun of him being worried if he didn't make fun of Sanji. It was amazing that even when Luffy did nothing at all, he cold bring the people of the ship a little bit coser together in silent understandings.

"So?" Sanji questioned as Chopper moved back from the capatin

"I , don't know." he said softly, his small, puppy dog like eyes shivering slightly.

Zoro and Sanji paused.

"What?" they asked simultaneously. Chopper sobbed and pulled his hat down.

"I don't know! This is something I've never seen before... my books!" and he scurried away.

Zoro and Sanji were in shock. Luffy gave a hacking cough and slid down the railings. Zoro's face hardened.

"He probably should be in bed." he muttered and bent down to pick Luffy up.

Sanji watched, knowing better than to make a comment right now. To say anything would probably be to snap Zoro's tension in two. And although they fought like cats and dogs any chance they had, Sanji knew that when it came to the moss-head and Luffy, he shouldn't really interfere. Those two always shared something special and the cook knew it. After all, why else would Zoro put up with such a bratty captain?

"**_Because he respects him … like you do"_** an annoying voice whispered in the back of the blondes mind

"Shut up" Sanji muttered half heartedly before turning to go back to the kitchen to make some soup for his sick captain.

Zoro walked down to the cabin, denying the worry and anxiousness he felt, the chance to sneak up on him. He lay Luffy down on the couch and sat beside him.

"Why doesn't Chopper know what's wrong with you?" he muttered, staring at Luffy's paling face.

It had all happened so fast. One minute the boy had been fine and the next … he was sick in bed and struggling to breathe. And it had been such a nice day too…

The swordsman heaved a sigh and lay down on the floor beside his captain. It seemed that Luffy's condition was deteriorating quickly considering by now his wheezing was much louder.

"Z-Zoro"

The swordsman shot upright as his name was called and turned towards his captain. The boy was covered in a layer of sweat and Zoro quickly got up and moved to grab a shirt lying on the floor to wipe it away. It didn't really matter whose it was, he'd take the stick for that later, right now all that mattered was taking care of his captain. He really could do with a cloth and some water right now though, as Luffy seemed to be developing a fever.

He stood up and moved to walk away, but quickly stopped as a hand wrapped around his arm.

"Don't go Zoro"

The swordsman flinched as Luffy's weak voice filled his ears and turned back around to see half lidded eyes gazing at him. Quickly abandoning his idea to retrieve the cloth and water, Zoro moved to sit beside his captain once more. He could always call for somebody else to get it after all and Luffy didn't need the stress.

"I'm not going anywhere … just rest up okay buddy?"

"I'm okay" the boy replied weakly

"I doubt that" Zoro replied as he wiped the sweat from Luffy's face with the shirt once more, holding back a smirk as he noted it was Sanji's

"No … really … it happened-"

A coughing fit interrupted the boy and the wheezing was deeper now and much louder. Though he was doing his best at hiding it, Zoro was starting to worry.

"It's okay" Luffy continued after a while "He'll come"

Well, that statement confused Zoro to no end. After a short moment of thinking he turned to ask the boy what he had meant, but found him sleeping and sighed.

"What's okay Luffy?" he whispered to the otherwise empty cabin "Who's coming?"

Meanwhile, up on deck Chopper was studying his books vigorously. He could find nothing. Nothing! How the hell had Luffy managed to contract something? And why couldn't he identify any of the symptoms with his medical information? As far as he could see it was the flu, but then some of the symptoms, and when he had looked at Luffy – it just couldn't be!

That wasn't the only strange thing. Nobody else on the ship had shown any similar symptoms and yet they had all travelled together on the same ship and Zoro had even gone with Luffy on the last island, so _he _should at least be showing some sign of sickness … but he wasn't. Maybe it wasn't contagious … or maybe only devil fruit users could catch it! He just didn't know and it was driving him crazy! How was he supposed to be abe to cure anything if he couldn't even help his own captain!

A whine of frustration broke from the reindeer's mouth as he failed to find any answers to his questions. Nami, who had just exited the girls cabin looked towards the little reindeer with a hint of worry. She had always had a soft spot for the little furball.

"What's wrong Chopper?" she asked as she came up beside him, crouching down to his level "You look stressed"

Chopper ignored her, intent on studying his books. Nami blinked. That wasn't like the reindeer.

"Hey, Chopper … hello?" she asked. The reindeer's head shot up.

"Oh, Nami, I'm just looking up something" he replied before flipping over a page with his little hoof "Luffy's sick"

"Luffy's sick?" she asked, a little stricken

Chopper nodded and didn't even look up as Nami swept past, the light breeze making the pages of the book sway. Normally, she wouldn't be that worried, but if Chopper was this concerned then it had to be bad. She also knew that sometimes the little reindeer had a tendency to overreact, but she wanted to check for herself to make sure.

In the cabin Zoro gazed at Luffy as the boy gave another hacking cough. He had woken up again due to an earlier bout of coughing and was staring tiredly at his first mate.

"Luffy, what's okay?" the swordsman pressed, a little demanding.

"Huh?" Luffy replied tiredly "Wha?"

"Before … you said it was okay … that he would come … what's okay Luffy?"

"This" Luffy replied as he took a deep breath, trying to shake the breathless feeling that had taken over his entire body "It happened when-"

He was cut off by the door opening and Nami stepping into the room. Zoro spun and a slightly annoyed look crossed his face.

"Nami..." Luffy gasped, brightening a little.

It was always good to see his Nakama when he was sick, not that it happened often. Zoro turned so Nami could look at Luffy.

"Hey, what's wrong with you kid?" she asked.

"It's okay, really, I happened when I was little back in Fuchsia but-"

Again Luffy fell silent as Usopp entered the room followed by Sanji who was carrying a bowl of steaming soup. Zoro growled quietly, angry at the fact that yet again Luffy had been interrupted from telling them what was wrong with him.

"Hey captain" Sanji smirked "Made you some chicken soup – extra large chicken pieces!"

Luffy brightened up and reached for the soup, but was assaulted by a violent coughing fit. When the coughs had finally subsided, Luffy lay sprawled on the couch, barely awake and breathing heavily. The crew were hovering around him with worried looks crossing their faces. Slowly the boys eyes slid closed as though he didn't have the strength to keep them open and within seconds he was asleep.

"Shit" Zoro muttered "What the hell's wrong with him?"

"He said it happened when he was a kid … maybe it's like a yearly disease he contracts or something"

Zoro grunted, eyes still fixed on his captains flushed face before he turned to Sanji.

"Would you bring down a bowl of water and a cloth to keep his fever down?"

Sanji knew now was not the time for fighting and merely nodded, leaving the room. Nami turned to Zoro and watched as he rearranged Luffy's tangle of limb into a more comfortable position.

"You really care about him huh?" she asked softly.

Zoro paused, and then continued his work, ignoring the question. Nami watched him, her eyes slightly sad and then she smiled in a knowing way. Sanji re-entered and Nami made to take the bowl, but Zoro got there first. He took the bowl with barely a glance at the navigator and dipping the cloth in the basin for a moment, he laid it on Luffy's forehead. Nami blinked and then smiled again.

"Come on Sanji," she mouthed and pointed out the door. Sanji nodded and followed the orange haired woman out. The door closed softly and Zoro was left sponging Luffy's forehead gently. There was a soft sigh and Luffy's trembling seemed to die down.

"Thanks Zoro." he muttered and then a small smile spread across his face. Zoro paused and then smiled.

"No problem kid." he replied.

**Well, that's the new and improved chapter 1. I know it's not very long, but my time is limited and I really don't have any to make it longer. I hope it's better than before. Chapter 2 should be along shortly.**


	2. Explanation And The Witch

**Fever**

**Disclaimer: Don't own it!**

**Chapter 2: Explanations and The Witch**

**I wanted to take opportunity in this chapter to thank Digitaldreamer and TreeStar for their reviews of the original fic and letting me know the plot was okay to expand on. Thanks you two!**

Luffy's fever got worse as the night wore on and Zoro stayed by his side all through it. Sanji had opted to sleep in the kitchen, due to Luffy's incessant groaning and whimpering. His reasoning had been that he had needed to be up in the morning to cook breakfast, but the crew new that the real reason was because he couldn't stand having to listen to Luffy in so much pain.

Robin was on watch tonight and Usopp found himself unusually envious of her. Anything would be better than just lying there and watching Luffy writhe in pain without being able to do anything to help. The sharpshooter really didn't know how Zoro did it; he sat there and watched every minute of it.

Usopp looked over from his bunk, and his eyes wavered as they rested on the candle, flickering weakly beside the swordsman. Right now Luffy was a lot like that candle. He was their light in the darkness and he showed them the way to follow heir dreams but that candle over there was burning so weakly now, the wax almost all melted. The flame was going to die soon and would have to be replaced with another candle. Maybe if Luffy didn't get better his fire would extinguish soon too. Usopp clenched his eyes closed at the thought and rubbed the wetness away from his eyes with his blanket, hoping that nobody had seen.

"**_Damn it!" _**He thought bitterly, clenching his fists **_"This is Luffy we're talking about here! He's not just someone that can be replaced – he _can't _die!"_**

With his resolve strong, he slowly climbed out of his bunk and made his way to where Luffy was resting. His brow creased in concern as he noticed how tired Zoro looked – he couldn't really blame him though, the guy was used to hourly naps and he had been awake now for majority of the day and night.

"...Zoro, I'll do that if you want." Usopp suggested.

Zoro turned to look at him and smiled, eyes weary.

"No … I'll do it … go back to sleep Usopp." the swordsman replied.

Usopp paused and then got up. He padded over and leaned down to look at Luffy, who was gasping as though he had just run a mile, and his hands were clenched on the blanket covering him.

"He's really bad, isn't he?" the long nose asked softly. Zoro sighed.

"Yeah ... I don't know what's wrong with him, Chopper doesn't know and even Ace says it's different than before" Zoo muttered angrily "How are we supposed to cure him, if we can't even identify what he has?"

And then Zoro gave a frustrated groan and tangled his own hands in his hair. Usopp watched him for a moment, eyes searching the older man's face.

"...Luffy said it happened to him before ... maybe the next time he wakes, we can ask him what helped before don't you think?" Usopp asked slowly.

Zoro paused and then untangled his hands from his hair slowly as he turned to face the marksman.

"What if he doesn't wake up?"

"Zoro!" Usopp said forcefully, surprising the swordsman, "When has Luffy ever let us down?"

"...never"

"Exactly. And he won't now. He won't let himself give up." Usopp said before standing up fully, the shadows flickering off his face in a threatening kind of way "After all, he isn't king of the Pirates yet is he?"

Zoro smiled and dropped his eyes back to Luffy's face.

"You're right Usopp." he said. Usopp smiled.

"I think I had better go and check on Chopper. He may be asleep on the deck with his books." Usopp said before walking out.

Zoro watched him leave. Usopp was right, and maybe there was more to the marksman than just lies. He sighed and gave Luffy's forehead another sponge. This would still be a long night, but there was no way he was going to leave the captain's side.

One of his best, and most endearing traits, was his loyalty, and hell be damned if he would let his good loyalty record be tarnished because he left Luffy's side in the time of the captain's need. Hell be damned...

Up on deck, Usopp spotted Chopper still studying under lamplight. The gentle sloshing of the waves against the side of the ship was soothing, and Usopp made his way carefully over to the little reindeer.

"What are you still doing up?" he asked.

Chopper's little head snapped up and bleary, puppy dog like eyes gazed at Usopp for a moment before they went back to the words in front of them.

"Trying to help Luffy." the doctor replied.

Usopp settled himself beside the reindeer and peered at a book.

"Wanna hear a story?" the liar asked.

Chopper paused. The offer was obviously tempting, but the reindeer shook his head.

"No, please Usopp. I'm trying to study." Chopper replied, very serious. Usopp smiled and picked up a book.

"So, what are we trying to find?"

"I … I don't know" Chopper admitted guiltily "Luffy … he's showing symptoms of the flu, but then not"

"So what does that mean?"

"I don't know" the little reindeer whispered "I'm not a good enough doctor"

Usopp released a sigh, knowing full well that the little doctor was going to blame himself from the start. With a small smile and idea formed in his head.

"Hey Chopper" he called "Have you ever heard of the wishing cure?"

"W-Wishing cure?"

"Of course!" the marksman shouted, before realising the late hour and quietening his voice "Its work for the Great Captain Usopp on numerous occasions!"

"Really?"

"And it's known to cure many things!"

"Do you think it could help Luffy?"

"Definitely!"

With a determined look on his face, the little reindeer demanded to know how to carry out this wishing cure.

"Okay" Usopp started "You close your eyes and take _deep_ breaths"

Chopper did as instructed, sitting beside Usopp as the liar had instructed to.

"You imagine the sickness…" Usopp continued noting how Chopper frowned "…and then imagine it being cured…" his frown lessened

Usopp watched as Choppers breaths started to even out and eventually the little doctor slumped to the side, leaning on the sniper as soft sores escaped his lips. Usopp grinned at how well his plan had worked and gently scooped up his friend, carrying him down to the boys cabin and making sure to extinguish the lamp he had been using.

In truth he hadn't really lied to Chopper, as the little reindeer had asked him if his cure would help Luffy, and in actual fact it would. Chopper was the one who would really help Luffy and if he didn't sleep, he couldn't help properly, so by getting him to sleep, in the long run he was helping to cure Luffy.

Zoro looked up from his Captain as the liar made his way down the ladder and gently placed his reindeer friend in his own hammock before turning to face him. Usopp's eyes widened as they fell on where his captain had been lying and Zoro quickly turned around to see Luffy was gone!

"Where is he?" Zoro cried, looking around frantically.

Chopper sat up in his hammock and Usopp seriously considering whacking Zoro over the back of the head right now.

"Where's who?" Chopper asked sleepily and then spotted the empty couch. "Luffy!" he cried.

"Usopp, go check down the corridor, I'll go up top. Chopper you go to the storage room. We have to find him!" Zoro instructed and then hurried up the ladder and out onto the deck.

There was silence for a moment and the gentle sloshing of the waves made him even more conscious of the disturbing gurgling sounds he began hearing. With speed he never knew he had, Zoro dashed to the edge of the ship and peered over into the murky oceans, sighing in relief when he saw the gurgling noise coming from a passing sea-creature. His relief was short lived though as his attention was caught by a very familiar silhouette against the moonlight, leaning precariously over the edge of the ship.

Zoro inched closer to his captain, but as he got closer, it seemed Luffy leaned further over the edge.

"She's … calling to me" Luffy whispered deliriously "I have to go or…"

Before another word could be said he toppled over the edge and Zoro pitched forward, barely managing to grab the now unconscious boy's hand. What the hell was going on with Luffy!

With a grunt he pulled him back to the deck and called for Usopp and Chopper, who had also been searching the ship. The rest of the crew were still sleeping, totally unaware of what was going on.

With a shaky sigh of relief, Zoro hefted Luffy into his arms and carried him princess-style into the kitchen. As he entered he spotted Sanji dozing over by the fridge and turned to Usopp asking him to retrieve the cloth and water he had been using to sponge Luffy up so that he could pour some new water. Usopp complied and was gone in less than a second, banging the door behind him and effectively waking the cook.

"Mm?" Sanji mumbled as he saw Chopper and Zoro in the kitchen "What's going on? We under attack?"

"Go back to sleep shitty-cook" Zoro replied gruffly "Nothing to worry about here"

Sanji blinked once and then twice before noticing the lump that was Luffy in Zoro's grip as the swordsman gently lay him on the table.

"Oi! Oi!" the cook protested "What's e doing up here? He should be in bed!"

"Don't you think I know that?" Zoro hissed "The kid can hardly breathe and the airs clearer up here so he's staying here for a while"

"Did Chopper say you could bring him up here?" the worry was evident now

"Nobody said he could come up" Chopper replied timidly "He was delirious and nearly fell off the ship"

"Shit" Sanji mumbled leaning over to get a better look at his captain "He alright?"

"He's fine" Zoro replied

The room lapsed into silence, save for Luffy's ragged breathing until finally Usopp returned with the bowl of water and cloth.

"I'll get that" stated Sanji as he took them from the marksman, refilled the bowl and handed it to Zoro

"Thanks" Zoro muttered as he took the bowl and proceeded to wipe the sweat away from the boys body.

Before long, the boys decided to head back to the cabin, Sanji included, and were seated around the still boy in silence. Before long they had all drifted into an uneasy sleep, all but one that is. His sharp eyes continued to watch his captain for the rest of the night; after all, that was a first mates job

The next morning came around and it seemed to Zoro as if Luffy was getting worse with every passing minute. He had awoken now, but he wouldn't eat, wouldn't drink, wouldn't do anything except stare at the ceiling and mutter about some witch and some curse. Zoro never managed to find out about what it was though. Every time he asked, Luffy would shy away and not answer or give him a look that clearly said he didn't know what the swordsman was talking about.

"Come on Zoro" Chopper wheedled, standing by Zoro who was watching over Luffy like a fox "You haven't had any sleep in two days – you need to rest!"

"No. I turned away for barely a second last night, and he was gone." and Zoro looked at the little reindeer, his hand firmly clasped in Luffy's as the boy weakly gripped it through his spasms of pain "I won't let that happen again."

Chopper left and Zoro turned back to face Luffy, only to see him gazing at him, sweat beading on the boy's forehead.

"Zoro ... cares?" Luffy rasped.

Zoro smiled and squeezed Luffy's hand.

"Of course I do captain. Why wouldn't I?" Zoro replied.

Chopper watched the two for a moment and then sighed. It was heartbreaking to see Luffy go through so much pain, and it was even more so when Luffy tried to act normal although it was plainly obvious he was anything but normal.

Chopper had begun taking a journal. Whatever Luffy did, whatever Luffy mumbled, he took it down. There wasn't a thing Luffy did that Chopper didn't know about. Sanji brought down food, and no matter how much the chef tried to deny it, he was worried as well; same with Nami.

"Zoro ... cares" Luffy said again and then his eyes slipped shut again and a smile seemed to grace his face and the sweat on his forehead stopped for a while.

Something in the way Luffy had thought about Zoro's caring, had triggered a short relaxant in Luffy's body. Zoro smiled. Inside, he was screaming. He had no means to help his friend, and it was tearing him apart. Seeing Luffy deteriorate like this was something none of the crew should have been made to witness, least of all the first mate. Zoro brushed a strand of Luffy's hair away from the boy's eyes.

"Get better soon buddy" he muttered "It's hell without you"

An entire week passed with no improvement in Luffy's condition. That morning Chopper had given them the news that none of them had ever wanted to hear.

If Luffy didn't improve in any way soon, he was going to die.

None of the crew really wanted to believe it, but they could all see it with their own eyes. The boy that had once been their strong and unbeatable captain … was dying.

They sat around him as he gasped for breath and weakly squeezed Zoro's and Nami's hand in either of his. His eyes were glazed over and he was delirious.

"Luffy" Zoro begged "Please … _please _… don't die…"

The rest of the crew stayed silent, all agreeing with the swordsman. A slight thump was heard above deck, but nobody paid attention to it, afraid that should they turn away, their captain's eyes may close and … they didn't even want to think about it.

Zoro couldn't help but think that he was being selfish. Luffy was in so much pain and yet … he was begging him to stay with him … to endure the pain, just so that he could feel better. He knew it was stupid, bt he couldn't help feeling that way, besides, Luffy would never let him give up if the roles were reversed … would he?

No. Never.

They all had dreams to achieve and damn it they would! With his strengthened resolve, Zoro stared intensely at his captain.

"_**If you die I'll never forgive you"**_

He didn't voice it out loud, but he had a feeling Luffy knew.

A light knock on the door finally drew their attention from the choking boy on the couch and all eyes widened as Ace walked casually through the door.

"Hey guys!" he greeted happily not able to see his brother through the other crew members "I was just passing though and saw your ship so … what's wrong? You look like somebody died"

Nobody moved or said a thing. Ace scanned the room and his eyes widened a little noticing the lack of his energetic little brother.

"Where's Luffy?" he asked.

This was too much for poor little Chopper, and the reindeer bolted from the room. Ace watched the reindeer and turned back to the group. The crew slowly parted, leaving Luffy open to his eyes. The pale boy looked skinnier than ever and Ace's bag dropped from his shoulder.

"It can't be." he whispered, "Luffy overcame this."

"Overcame what?" Usopp asked sadly, his eyes never leaving Luffy's face.

Ace walked forward, ignoring the marksman as he knelt by Luffy's side. Zoro was beside him, red rimmed eyes gazing at Luffy carefully, his lips seemingly set in a permanent look of remorse.

"He ... when he was little, Luffy was prone to getting angry at the wrong people, such as the bandit that insulted Luffy's idol, Shanks" Ace explained "Well, Luffy disappeared for a while, and no matter where Makino or I looked, we couldn't find him. It was a scary experience – I mean, we thought for sure that he'd picked a fight with the wrong type of guy and was dead"

"Where did you find him?" Nami asked

"That's the thing – we didn't" Ace continued "It had been just over a week when Luffy re-appeared, on the edge of town without a cut, scrape, bruise or anything. He was sick, like he had the flu, but, not – that's what the doctor said anyway"

Zoro turned. This was what Chopper had said. The flu ... but not.

"What happened?" Zoro croaked.

Nami looked up. They hadn't heard the swordsman speak in over a day. Ace blinked and then touched Luffy's cheek.

"He nearly died." Ace said simply. "He was like this. The town doctor had given up hope, and we didn't think he would survive the night but then this strange old woman showed up at our door. She dropped a bottle of some liquid on our doorstep, left specific instructions to give it to Luffy immediately and we did and ... he was fine; recovered the next day like nothing had ever been wrong." Ace finished.

"So, what was actually wrong?" Nami asked softly. Ace shrugged.

"I don't know. But, if that old woman doesn't turn up again, then..." and he trailed off, gazing at Luffy sadly. "I don't even know what was in that bottle, I mean he didn't remember anything"

"He keeps mumbling about a witch" Usopp offered

"That's what I told him … I thought the old woman was a witch that had made a magic potion to heal Luffy" Ace explained "He must think that there really is a witch that can help him"

"But there isn't?" Nami asked

"No" Ace replied miserably "And if we don't hel him … he'll…"

"That can't be true" Zoro spoke again, wincing as his voice cracked slightly whe he had eant for it to be firm "He can't just … die … I won't let him!"

"No more shouting…" a weak voice pleaded from the couch and all eyes turned to the now conscious Luffy as he struggled to smile having noticed his brother "A-Ace"

"I'm here Luffy" Ace replied running a hand through his sick brother's hair

"A-Are you going to make me b-better l-like before?" Luffy asked hopefully

"I…" Ace wanted to tell his brother he was going to be okay, but he just couldn't. They had always been truthful to one another so he wasn't about to start lying now "Luffy" he ground out "You're dying"

"Dying... but, I haven't become king of the pirates yet." Luffy replied and then coughed.

There was a crash on deck, and Sanji turned before hurrying up the ladder to check it out.

"Yeah, I know. You will." Ace said softly, feeling the corners of his eyes prickle as he continued to run a hand through Luffy's hair.

"But, you just said..." and Luffy trailed off with a sigh.

"You will, because I'm not going to let you die." Zoro said forcefully. Luffy's bloodshot eyes came to rest on Zoro's face again and he smiled.

"It doesn't matter Zoro. I'll be alright. You guys can go and follow your own dreams this way." Luffy rasped.

Zoro's lip trembled, but he bit it to stop from crying. This wasn't the time to cry. Same old Luffy, being so damn brave, understanding and accepting, even when it was him that was dying; caring more about his crews dreams than his own life.

"Luffy, the only reason we have come this far is because of you. Your dream carried us this far." Zoro explained and Luffy grinned, and this time, it wasn't forced. It was a genuine, true smile. "There. That's the Luffy I've missed." and Luffy gave a weak chuckle and Zoro smiled.

"Thanks Zoro." and Luffy seemed to brighten a little, even regain a little of his energy.

Ace paused and then glanced at Zoro. Something was happening to his brother. Something that hadn't happened last time and Ace thought he could pick up on what it was. He let a small smile slip over his face. There was a gasp and Ace's eyes snapped back to Luffy as the boy arched his back, as if in pain. Zoro blinked and then his breathing quickened.

"What's happening? Did this happen last time?" Zoro asked, panicking slightly.

"No. It didn't" Ace replied as Luffy twisted and then fell back against the couch, his breathing shallow and quick "His sickness was just that, a sickness, there ws no real pain involved"

"Nami..." Sanji's voice said from the ladder. The orange haired woman paused and then turned to look at the blonde.

"What is it Sanji?" she asked.

The chef beckoned to her with a finger and she got up to hurry over. Sanji held out a small piece of paper to her and Nami took it rather sceptically.

As her eyes skimmed the words written on the paper she gasped and ran to Ace, handing it to him. Ace quickly read the words and his eyes widened as he noticed the emblem marked in the corner of the paper.

"It's her" he whispered pointing at the emblem "That's her sign – it was on the last note she left"

The crew eyed the paper warily scanning the words with bated breath. This could be their last chance. On the paper were three simple sentences that meant worlds to the crew.

_Tonight at seven_

_Your ship_

_I'll be there_

**Well, there's the new and improved chapter 2! Hope you enjoyed it! Don't forget to review!**


	3. Sirchana D Aurelias

**Fever**

**Disclaimer: Don't own it!**

**Chapter 3: Sirchana D. Aurelias**

**Blah**

The hours seemed to drag as the crew stayed by their captain, he seemed almost lost to them now as he babbled incoherently, mistaking them for Shanks and Makino and thinking he was a child again. The crew played along, not wanting to upset him.

Several times, Sanji had attempted to feed him, however that had ended up with more food on the cook that in his captain's stomach, and when he did manage to get him to swallow some food through his gasps for air, he either ended up choking on it or throwing up, thus resulting in it ending up on the cook anyway.

After the last attempt, Sanji had decided to give up not being able to stomach the fact that so much food was being wasted (and on him no less). He had understood for the first few times, but as he had ended up with the same result over and over, he had found his patience wearing thin and his temper threatening to appear. The last thing he wanted or needed right now was to be angry at Luffy.

He didn't even know why he felt so upset with the boy maybe it was because he was threatening to leave them. Whatever it was, Sanji didn't like it and had returned to simply stting beside his Captain, offering water when it seemed his breathing was faltering to the point where he could get no air into his lungs and hoping for the best.

The rest of the crew had had alternating reactions to their captain's illness ranging from guilt to sorrow to anger and more. The one seeming to handle the situation best was in actual fact Ace, which was rather surprising considering it was his own brother dying in front of his eyes. Robin had even shed a few tears for her Captain as her usual calm demeanour had crumbled after his request to speak with her.

He had personally asked to speak to them individually in his coherent moments. He would simply utter a name, and knowing it was not yet their turn the rest of the crew would leave. During these times, as they had spoken to one another about what Luffy had to say, the rubber boy would tell them how proud he was, confirm that they are in actual fact the _best _in the world at whatever was their job on the ship and simply talk until his breath ran out when he would listen until his eyes couldn't seem to stay open any longer wherein the rest of the crew would return.

These moments were very special to the straw hat pirates. Their captain was very special to them. They were like a family … a crazy, pirate, freaky family.

Chopper seemed to have the worst reaction of all the crew members beside Zoro, who was, at best, taking it like a man. The little reindeer had locked himself away in cupboard for hours before finally coming out at Luffy's weak request. He had tried to smile at his Captain, but had only burst into tears at the sight in front of him. The crew had tried to comfort him, but to no avail, as the little doctor fled the room once more.

As the hours ticked by, tension on the ship grew. Nobody knew who this ysterious woman was or what powers she possessed. Was she friend or was she foe? Why was it that only _she _could help him? There were so many questions that needed answering and so little time left for Luffy.

The crew became snappy at one another and even Sanji (though apologised profusely afterwards) snapped at Nami. It made the crew question their own bonds; whether the only thing holding them together was in actual fact Luffy. Nobody voiced their doubts, but each knew the other was thinking it.

But now wasn't the time for it, now was the time for being a true Nakama and being there for their Captain; and so they pulled together like they should and hovered over Luffy as he clung to life.

Finally after what seemed lie an eternity of watching their Captain suffer, seven rolled around and the entire crew save Zoro made their way up to the deck. They were shocked to find the old woman Ace had told them about waiting for them.

"Hi" Ace greeted warily, not really sure of what to say as she stared straight at him "Luffy is sick again"

"I am aware of that, boy" the woman replied "Take me to him and I will see what I can do"

"Who are you?" Nami asked

"Me?" the woman questioned "I am Sirchana D. Aurelias"

"D!" Ace questioned "Are we…?"

"We will discuss this later – take me to the boy"

"Sure, sure" Ace replied and beckoned her through the door.

The old woman was dressed in a tight fitting pair of leather pants, high heeled boots and she seemed to be as skinny as Dr Kuraeha on Drum island. She had pure white hair, but a purple streak ran down the side of her face and she had intense green eyes. A long sleeved shirt covered her upper body and played down the look of coolness she seemed to give off. Chopper couldn't keep his eyes off of her as he studied the similarities between her and his mentor.

When they reached Luffy, he was pretty far gone. Almost as pale as death and Zoro seemed to be clutching Luffy's hand so hard that if it had of been normal and not made of rubber, it would have broken. He looked up when the woman walked down. He glared at her.

"Who the hell are you?" he asked, some of his old personality coming into play.

The woman put a hand on her hip and then waved a hand. Zoro felt himself pulled slightly away from Luffy, his hand detaching itself. He squeaked at first from shock before growling at the old woman.

"Witch." he growled,

He made an attempt to get back to Luffy, but found that he couldn't, and with each attempt he was dragged away again. His attempts became more desperate with each try and his fingernails scratched into the floorboards beneath him, but to no effect.

"You may as well quit." Aurelias snapped, her voice harsh. "You cannot break that spell"

Ace was staring at her and he made to move forward but she swept a hand out and sent him backwards. No one was able to move, and the only sound was Luffy's rasping breath and Zoro's frantic scrabbling at the boards to try and get back to Luffy.

"I ... won't quit." Zoro grunted out as he tried to go back again.

Aurelias paused and then smiled and waving her hand again, Zoro flew back and slammed into the wall.

"Stay down sonny." she said and then walked forward towards Luffy's figure. She gazed down at him.

"He shouldn't be sick." she muttered and then kneeled beside the boy and placed her hand over his chest. "I didn't think he would ever get sick. Not like this." and then she turned to look at Zoro, who was twitching on the floor, moving forward inch by inch. "He's in love."

"In … love?" the entire crew plus Ace asked in shock, even Zoro stopped scraping for a second to try and grasp what this woman had just told him before returning to his fight

It really was foreign concept for them to think of. Luffy in love was just something that would never even enter the heads of those that knew him. Sure, he loved his Nakama, he loved his big brother, but Luffy being _in love_, was just a little freaky.

"What does that have to do with this you old hag!" Zoro snapped angrily, still trying in vain to get to his captain

"Watch your mouth sonny" Aurelias replied "Or I may just decide to leave him here to die"

The room instantly silenced and the old witch smirked. Slowly she turned back to Luffy and her smirk fell into a frown.

"It doesn't make sense" she muttered "This … I thought it was impossible"

"What is?" Ace questioned

"He should not be sick … unless…"

"Unless what?" the narcoleptic man pressed

"This is going to sound a little bit cliché kiddies" the witch warned

"Unless what?" Ace urged again

"Unless he feels as if his love isn't returned. It may be returned, but Luffy may not feel it is, and therefore, he is letting himself die." Aurelias said sadly.

"How can that make him sick like this?" Nami questioned angrily "If you're 'love-sick' then you tend to get depressed or _emotionally _unstable – not the flu!"

"Well, that would be partially my fault" Aurelias admitted

"Explain" Zoro demanded

"Very well, your brother" she started as she looked at Ace "Decided to pick a fight with an ex-friend of mine"

Ace groaned, finally finding out that it was Luffy's temper that had gotten him in trouble again. This only caused the witch to smirk.

"Yes. Quite a firecracker wasn't he?"

"Get on with it witch"

"I have a name you know"

"I don't care"

"Then maybe I don't"

With that said, Aurelias moved to leave the room.

"Wait!" Zoro called and then reluctantly added "What's your name?"

"Sirchana D. Aurelias"

"Fine … Sirchana … Aurelias … whatever … please help him"

"That's more like it … now as I was saying" she continued, returning to her spot beside Luffy as she released her hold on the crew, letting them move freely "My friend cast a very powerful spell on your little brother, she spent and entire week perfecting it"

"That would explain Luffy missing for that time" Ace stated

"Indeed … she then cast it on him and sent him home to die"

"But you cured him" Ace interrupted

"Hardly" Aurelias snapped back "The magic she made was far above my standards at the time, I could only counteract it and suppress it"

"Is that what the potion you left with me did?" Ace asked

"Correct"

"So do you have another to give him?" he asked hopefully

"I wouldn't recommend feeding him" Sanji muttered

"Unfortunately no" the witch answered "The potion I gave him before is now coming into effect"

"What did it do?"

"I made it to suppress the sickness until something extremely unlikely of my choosing would occur and even then I wanted to make it so that the sickness could still be cured should it reappear so I made it 'love'"

"What?" Nami questioned

"With this one's personality" she explained, gesturing to Luffy "I assumed he would never truly fall in love with somebody and so decided that that would be the factor to base the reappearance of the sickness on … however if in the unlikely scenario he did fall in love, the sickness could be cured if the person he loved returned his feeling openly … it doesn't count if they hide it"

"What the hell?" he asked angrily "Why should he get sick, juts because he feels his love interests aren't returned? Why couldn't you just cure him!"

"I could only do so much then" she admitted "Plus I was a bit of a romantic in my earlier days!"

The crew stared at the witch incredulously. Was this woman for real? Zoro looked as if he was about to snap.

"But if you could do all of that, surely you could have cured him!" Nami protested

"There are many things unknown in this world and that boy is one of them – I could not fully cure him because of who he is"

"What do you mean?"

"I cannot answer that" Aurelias replied "It is a mystery of the D"

"What the hell?" Zoro asked angrily

"Why can the boy talk with dragons, why does he never give up? Why does his smile never falter or his dreams never die?" the old witch asked heatedly "It is the will of the D!"

Needless to say, the crew were speechless. Was there something so deep about Luffy, so mysterious? Right now they didn't really care, all they wanted was for their captain to get better.

"So what do we do now?" Sanji asked

"We get the person he loves to admit their feeling genuinely to him"

"But ... who does he love?" Sanji asked from the corner he had been sent to as the crew had not yet moved closer to their captain, not wanting to disturb the old woman.

Aurelias paused and then chuckled.

"Oh, it's not obvious?" she asked. Ace frowned.

"Is it...?" he muttered but the woman silenced him and then turned her vivid eyes on Zoro, who was still clawing his way slowly back towards Luffy as he was the only one to have not yet been set free from her holding spell. He didn't see the looks from the rest of the crew as his own eyes were set on Luffy's form on the couch.

"So, how do we get him to admit it?" Usopp asked.

"He needs to know he is loved or he will die" Aurelias stated and the entire room was silent. Zoro even paused, breathing heavily as his eyes roved over Luffy's form

Suddenly realising what the old witch was saying, Zoro turned on her and got to his feet glaring angrily.

"You're the reason for all of this!" he shouted "You're the reason he's suffering right now – so fix it!"

"I cannot do that"

"Why not?"

"He needs to be healed by the one he loves"

Zoro was just about to question how they go about doing that when a strangled cry came from the boy behind him.

The swordsman spun around just in time to see Luffy fall to the floor motionless. Nothing was moving … not even his chest.


	4. Fever Broken

**Fever**

**Disclaimer: Don't own it!**

**Chapter 4: Fever Broken**

**Thank you so much for your patience with me updating these fanfictions! I still don't have any access to the internet other than the occasional trip to my uncle's house for a few hours once every few weeks. I'll do my best to updates as often as possible and thank you so much to everybody who took the time to review!**

"No!" Zoro shouted, diving to the floor to scoop the boy into his arms "No Luffy! Don't you dare!"

The swordsman couldn't believe it. Luffy couldn't be – he wouldn't believe it, it was impossible! Hadn't they just been about to cure him? They had! It couldn't end like this! This was Luffy they were talking about! Luffy. Did. Not Die!

Slowly Zoro realised the wetness running down his cheeks. He was crying. The rest of the crew followed suit as the tears began to flow. They begged for Luffy to be okay but he wasn't … he was dead.

"**_NO!" _**Zoro thought angrily **_"I promised him! I promised him I wouldn't let him die! I CAN'T let him die! I … I … need him…"_**

"You're not dead!" Zoro cried grabbing Luffy's hand and holding it close to his chest, "You can't be dead!" he sobbed as tears ran freely down his face.

Sanji turned away. He disliked Zoro, but no one should have to go through that kind of pain. Ace's teeth were gritted, his hands clenched as he held onto one last tiny shred of hope. Chopper ran into the room and stopped at the door. He took one look at Luffy and the book that was in his arms dropped to the floor. Usopp quickly grabbed the little doctor and pulled him into a tight hug. Nami's lip was trembling but she couldn't stop her tears from falling as Zoro rocked Luffy's limp body in his arms.

"You're not dead..." he whispered, cradling Luffy's head in his lap "You're not" he sobbed and then shuddered. "Fine. I love you, okay? I love you damn it!" he cried and pressed his forehead to Luffy's. "Come on. I know you can come back. Please? … don't leave me …. Don't leave _us _… we still need you" he whispered.

Aurelias watched for a moment hoping that it would still work the emotional display in front of her even made her tear up a little. She hoped this would work. Her own nails began to dig into her palms as they waited.

Seconds passed, turning into minutes and slowly Zoro lowered Luffy's unmoving body to the ground.

"_**He's not coming back…"**_

"You!" Zoro cried, pointing at Aurelias "You said he would come back if I said it! I said it and he didn't come back!"

"Did you mean it?" she replied past the lump in her throat **_"Is it too late now? Don't let me down swordsman"_**

"I did!" Zoro practically screamed "I love him with all of my heart!"

Aurelias's eyes widened as Luffy suddenly took in a deep gasping breath. His chest once again started to rise and fall. Zoro's head slowly turned back to his Captain, and he just watched as Luffy took in deep breath, after deep breath of air.

"Heh" Zoro grunted and then a smile spread across his face, "Ha! I knew it!" he cried,

Happiness beyond anything he had ever felt before was seeping through him. He squeezed the boy closer to him until he groaned slightly in pain making the swordsman release him again.

For minutes they all just stared at the sleeping boy before Zoro stood up and gently placed him back on the couch. His hands balled into fists at his side as he eyed his captain and scrubbed away any evidence of his previous tears.

"Don't you _ever_ fucking _dare _do that to us – to me again!" he shouted, even though he knew the boy couldn't hear him. The rest of the crew were silent.

Slowly but surely they all collected their wits and turned back to the old witch, still waiting patiently behind them. She had a smirk on her face with her arms folded across her chest. A throaty laugh escaped her lips and the crew turned towards her.

For the first time Chopper took a long and hard look at the woman in front of him. He had been stealing glances at her for the entire time that she had been there, but was completely distracted by Luffy to _really _look at her. Suddenly his eyes widened and he gasped – she looked just like – exactly the same eyes as-

"Ace!" Chopper suddenly cried "You have the same tired eyes as Ace!"

The crew looked from the reindeer to the witch in curiosity, moving a bit closer to see if they could identify what the little doctor had. After a few seconds they all mumbled agreements.

"Who are you?" Ace asked curiously "Are we … related?"

Aurelias cackled lightly and ran a hand across Ace's cheek.

"That, my boy" she smirked "Is for another time"

She raised her arms and the Going Merry was engulfed by a blinding light, and when the light vanished, she was gone. Ace looked around but there was no sign of her.

"Well that was lame" Sanji stated, trying to hide the sniffle that had broken loose at the end of his sentence with a cough

"She didn't even answer any of our questions!" Usopp protested

"She was freaky man." Ace said. Sanji chuckled.

"I'm going to make us some lunch." he said but it was plainly obvious he was going upstairs to just get rid of his tears.

How it was obvious? Well, it was kind night time and sort of not the time for lunch. Not to mention his smoke had just run out. Chopper squeaked and ran over to Luffy, hooves clicking on the floor. He just had to make sure the boy was once again okay.

Usopp followed, scrubbing at his face. Zoro sighed and leaned against the couch, Luffy's hand still in his. Usopp stopped in front of him and Zoro glared up at him.

"Yes?" he asked. Usopp shook his head.

"Nothing." he replied to the question, and looked down at Luffy's sleeping form.

The boy seemed to be getting better with each passing second. Colour was returning to Luffy's cheeks and his fever was going down. Chopper giggled.

"Love!" he cried and then launched himself at Zoro and gave the swordsman a gigantic hug before running up the ladder, squealing happily.

Usopp smiled and followed. Zoro stayed where he was. He wasn't moving any time soon. Nami gave him a sly smile and wink before leaving and Ace just laughed outright before joining her. Zoro just knew he was going to get teased for this by them later. There was a soft sigh and Zoro looked up to see Luffy's eyes fluttering open.

"Luffy...?" he asked softly and then got onto his knees to lean over the smaller boy. Luffy smiled.

"Hey Zoro" he croaked, eyes slipping in and out of focus. Zoro smiled.

"Thought I lost you there for a minute buddy." he said. Luffy grinned.

"Nah … I'll always come back." Luffy replied. Zoro chuckled and there was a silence.

"Is what you said true Zoro?" Luffy asked softly. Zoro paused.

"You … heard all of that?"

"Yeah … it ws like I was traped iside, but I could see what was going on … was it true?"

"...of course." Zoro replied, the words coming from his mouth before he could even think. It was probably better that way. Luffy smiled.

Zoro leaned forward as Luffy craned his neck upwards. Their lips met in a shy first kiss. Slowly Zoro's hand wound its way into his captain's hair and YANKED IT!

"Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!" Luffy screamed as he bolted upright "What was that for!"

Sanji smirk and released his hold from his captain's hair.

"It's about time you woke up you little shit!" he grinned "We've been worried sick about you!"

"Wha?"

"You've had a bad fever for days now Luffy" Chopper offered "You got really sick and … you almost died … but … now its okay right?"

Luffy blinked once and then twice, looking around the room at the smiling faces of his Nakama. It was all a … dream? He glanced once more around the room and his eyes widened as they fell on the old witch, Sirchana D. Aurelias. She gave him a quick wave with an arrogant smirk and vanished from his sight.

"Hey old hag!" he called angrily "Don't leave yet! You didn't answer my Nakama's questions!"

The rest of the crew followed Luffy's gaze to the empty wall and raised their eyebrows.

"Oi – you better not be talking to Nami" Sanji warned "Or you really _will _die!"

"Not Nami!" Luffy protested "The hag that was in the corner – she's gone now though"

The crew exchanged worried glances.

"Maybe he does need more rest" Sanji muttered, walking out of the room "I'll go get the soup"

There were a series of muttered agreements from all around and Luffy grinned. His grin widened further as Ace walked in the room followed by Zoro, who had gone to get the dark-haired man after Luffy had shown signs of waking up.

"Ace!" the boy cried excitedly as he jumped out of bed and swayed dangerously on his feet. Before he had a chance to fall, Zoro was there with his arms wrapped around his waist to steady him.

"You okay captain?" he asked worriedly

Luffy looked into Zoro's eyes for second before grinning widely and turning to face his first mate.

"I love you Zoro!" he stated happily

The crew gasped as Luffy pushed forward, pressing his lips to Zoro's before the swordsman had a chance to do anything but stand there. It was a chaste kiss, but a kiss nonetheless. Ace smiled. He had kind of suspected this from the moment Luffy had introduced him to his Nakama. The boy had shown a particular fondness for the green-haired swordsman. As long as his brother was happy, he didn't really care what decision he made in life.

Nami burst out laughing as she quickly whipped out her camera to get a few shots of the two kissing. Usopp grinned and covered Chopper's eyes with his hands, even against the little reindeer's protests he refused to move them. Robin simply smiled that mysterious smile of hers.

Zoro blinked once and then twice. Somehow Luffy had managed to wrap his own arms around Zoro's and was now grinning cheekily at the man in front of him.

"Don't worry" he smiled "I already know you love me too, you don't need to say it!"

Zoro just continued to blink, and that was how Sanji found them when he walked back into the room, Luffy's soup in his hands. He shook his head, muttering about 'gay swordsmen being more subtle' which inevitable broke Zoro from his stupor.

With a fierce growl the swordsman spun on his heel, releasing Luffy who trotted over to his brother. The rubber boy watched as yet another fight broke out between his cook and first mate ad a soft smile touched his lips.

"You okay little brother?"

"Mmm" came the sleepy reply as Luffy leaned his head against his brothers shoulder "Great"

Luffy really didn't know if that old woman was a figment of his imagination or not, or if all of those things had really happened or were a dream, but right now it didn't really matter. He had his Nakama and he had his big brother and he had his Zoro and that was good enough.

**Epilogue still to come. I know I could have put it in this chapter, but I thought that this was a good place to end the chapter. Hope you liked.**


	5. Figuring Things Out

**Fever**

**Disclaimer: Don't own it!**

**Chapter 5: Figuring Things Out**

**Thank you to all of those who took the time to review this fic. Once again, this was a joint effort between myself and wishing-for-a-zolo-plushie so half the credit goes to her.**

A couple of days had passed since Luffy had woken and he was now allowed back up on deck and out of bed for the first time. As he stepped onto the deck he took a deep breath of fresh air and sighed in relief. It was good to be free again.

With a casual laugh, he ran straight for the figurehead and jumped up, crossing his legs and looking out onto the horizon. This was his thinking place, where only he could sit; his special place.

His smile wavered slightly as he thought about his first mate and swordsman. Ever since that kiss he had been avoiding Luffy like the plague; always making excuses and finding reasons to leave when the boy got too near. It hurt. Luffy wasn't going to lie. He had opened up to the swordsman and as far as he could see, been rejected. It made him wonder if maybe it was all a dream.

No. It couldn't have been! He saw the old hag and she even waved goodbye … but then what if he was just seeing things. He sighed loudly at that thought and slumped down from his usual energetic position.

So now what? If Zoro _really _didn't like him, then things couldn't ever be the same again. Luffy could easily pretend that nothing had happened, he could slip a mask on and act as if there were no feeling between the two … but Zoro, no, he wouldn't ever look at Luffy the same again now that he knew.

Another sigh escaped the boy's lips and fell forward onto the rams head with his arms and legs hanging off either side of the head. Another though suddenly struck him and he sat upright once again.

What if Zoro wanted to leave the ship? No! He couldn't! He wouldn't! He made a promise!

There was only one thing Luffy knew. He had to see Zoro. Right. Now.

With that thought in mind, he jumped from the rams head back onto the deck and began his search for his first mate.

Zoro, however, was having the exact same problem as his Captain. He was sat in one of the storage areas in the hopes that his Captain wouldn't find him. Luffy's had certainly done a number on him the other day when he kissed him, and the problem was, he couldn't tell if the boy was serious or not.

Zoro had decided quite a while ago that he loved his Captain in a way that he shouldn't have, and had resigned himself to suffering I silence, but when Luffy had said that he loved him, it had been so … perfect … too good to be true, and that's why the swordsman was hesitating.

The way Luffy had said it, it was juts so … natural … almost too easy, which made Zoro wonder whether the boy really knew what he was talking about, and then he had kissed him, but Luffy so innocent … he might not have known what that kiss meant! And then if he were to tell Luffy how he felt and the boy hadn't meant it the way it had come across Zoro would be … devastated.

A ragged sigh forced its way through his lips as he rubbed at his aching temples. This was _really _giving him a headache now.

He had spent the last couple of days avoiding Luffy as much as possible, which wasn't too difficult considering he was forced into bed rest by Chopper, but when he came up on deck for some fresh air, or into the bathroom, or into the galley for lunch, he had quickly made and excuse to leave. It wasn't that he didn't _want _to talk to the boy, but it was just that he wasn't _ready_. He needed to sort out his feelings before he took the chance.

Maybe a nap would help? Zoro slid down against the box a little to get a comfortable position and closed his eyes. Images of a pale, shivering Luffy flashed through his mind and his eyes snapped back open. It had been like this since Luffy had become sick; whenever he went to sleep those images would return and haunt his dreams with Kuina, keeping him awake and thoroughly grumpy.

He frowned harder as he remembered how close Luffy had come to dying. They had gone through all of those battles and journeys just to have him die from some fever? No, I think not. But no matter what they had done, they couldn't get the fever to go down and then one day, the day Chopper had predicted Luffy was likely to die if his fever didn't waver, it suddenly broke and the boy was fine.

The relief that had flooded through him was instant and he had quickly run to get Ace to let him know. Ace had dropped by having seen their ship to check on his little brother and had stayed to see him through the sickness. He had left yesterday after making sure his little brother really was going to be okay, but didn't seem too please with Zoro if he had noted correctly, which he was pretty sure he had. The swordsman knew it was because he had been avoiding Luffy, but what was he supposed to do?

He really didn't know why he was being like this. If Luffy turned him away, he could just cover it up by pretending he was joking and then everything could go back to normal. He could just put on a mask and pretend not to love the boy and nobody would ever know but Luffy, if he felt awkward after Zoro's confession then their current relation ship would never be the same. It's not as if Luffy could mask his feelings.

So he'd tell him then. He just hoped he wouldn't get rejected, or that Luffy would shy away from him … just like he was doing to Luffy.

Shit. What if Luffy thought Zoro was rejecting him? Double shit. Their relationship could already be ruined if that was the case!

With that thought in mind, Zoro hauled himself to his feet and made his way out of the room.

There was only one thing Zoro knew. He had to see Luffy. Right. Now.

Luffy had searched the whole deck and both cabins (much to Nami's protest) but hey, Zoro _could_ have been in her underwear drawer! He had then made his way to the galley and he new if Zoro wasn't in there then he was hiding from him and there was no point in even looking. He _could _carry on looking for him, but if Zoro was hiding then he obviously didn't what to see Luffy, so Luffy wouldn't look for him.

Luffy opened the door to the galley quietly (as Sanji was cooking lunch and he couldn't get kicked out if he had to look for Zoro) and peered around the room, stretching his neck down so that his head was hanging upside down touching the floor to look under the table.

A soft sigh escaped his lips as he found no trace of his swordsman. So Zoro was hiding then.

Sanji's lip twitched I annoyance when he heard the galley door creak open slightly. He knew it was Luffy as lately the boy had been trying the 'sneaky' approach to stealing food, but if anybody knew Luffy, they knew he was anything but sneaky. The cook almost wished he'd go back to bust-through-the-door-and-demand-food method as he found this knew one much more annoying.

Before it was really like a game of baseball, or football. Luffy would come flying into the galley with a cry for food and Sanji would spin around and kick him back out. He got ten points every time he got him out the door, five for hitting him and minus 5 if he caused damage. He found it an efficient way of ridding himself of Luffy and a good method of preserving the ship. He was pretty sure Luffy had liked the game too.

Speaking of Luffy, he was taking a little bit longer to attack. Maybe he was trying something knew? Well Sanji wasn't about to let him do that. He spun around, spatula in hand, ready to strike, but blinked I confusion when he saw said boy sitting at the table with his face pressed against the wood and his arms hanging limply by his side.

Sanji's eyes narrowed as he realised what was bothering the boy. The fact that Zoro wouldn't just come out and say how he felt was eating away at the boy. Sanji moved to sit opposite Luffy, making sure to turn the cooking food down to the lowest level and leaned forward trying to get a look at the boy.

"Hey Luffy?" he called "You okay?"

No response came from the boy and Sanji leaned to the side a bit so that he could see the edge of his face. Luffy's eyes were open, so he was awake, but obviously didn't feel like talking about anything (for once). Sanji had a pretty good idea how he could get him to open up.

"You want a nice big meat-on-bone with a milky mug of hot chocolate?"

A stirring in the captain, he was definitely tempted.

"I'll even give you some extra sugar in the chocolate"

Big eyes peeked up at the blonde and he grinned knowing he had won. Breakfast could wait a little while and Nami wasn't even up yet (having been on watch last night) so he didn't have to worry about waiting on her just yet, so his attention could go to Luffy for now. Normally he would never be this generous of nice to his thieving little trouble maker of a captain, but when Luffy moped, it definitely wasn't good. It affected the mood of the whole crew.

The cook moved to prepare Luffy's meal and the boy sat up in his chair, peeling his face from the table. A harsh cough escaped his lips and Sanji listened closely noting the boys breathing starting to become wheezy. Damn it. He was getting sick again. It made the cook wonder whether what Luffy had told them all was true. He had been adamant that it wasn't a dream retelling the story of some old hag – he had even given her name! Some weird name Sirch…Sirchana D … Aurelias was it? Anyway, the point was, he had said he got sick because he thought Zoro hadn't loved him, but when the Zoro in 'the dream' had admitted his feeling he had gotten better. Now Zoro was ignoring and avoiding Luffy and the boy was going to get sick again.

**_Damn it Marimo _**thought Sanji angrily **_Get your act together_**

Sanji really didn't know if it was true or not, but it wasn't fair on Luffy to have to go through this. He gave the hot chocolate a final stir as he turned the meat to cook the other side and then passed the mug to the boy behind him. A few minutes later, he joined him at the table and delivered his meat to him. Luffy graced him with a smile and dug in. Sanji knew he was in a much better mood now though still far from happy. The cook grinned back and Luffy started to slow down in his eating. This was when he truly loved cooking for the boy because if he took his time it was a sign he was enjoying it and wanted to savour it. He didn't say anything more. If Luffy wanted to talk he would talk; if he didn't then he wouldn't.

Zoro had searched pretty much the whole ship. He had expected Luffy to either be sleeping in the boy's cabin, sitting on his special seat or playing a game with Chopper and Usopp, but the boy was nowhere to be found. He approached the galley, having been the only place he hadn't looked as he doubted the boy would be in there considering he was kicked out whenever he entered without permission. As he grabbed the handle and went to push the door open but had stopped as he heard voices inside.

"Come on Luffy" Sanji voice spoke softly, forcing Zoro to lean his ear against the door to understand what the muffled voice was saying "Talk about it"

"I don't want to" Luffy replied – did he sound sad or was it just Zoro?

A series of coughs followed his sentence and Zoro winced. Why had Chopper let him out of bed if he was still sick?

"It's about Marimo eh?" Sanji voice asked and then added "Thought so"

Luffy had probably nodded

"Why don't you go and talk to him?"

"I tried" Luffy replied "He's hiding from me"

"He's probably just asleep somewhere"

"He always sleeps on the deck or in the cabins in case we're attacked" Luffy replied

"Really?" Sanji asked thoughtfully "How do you know that?"

"He told me"

"…he does love you, you know"

"I know" Luffy replied "But I don't _feel _like he does"

"Just give the blockhead some time to figure out what he wants – he's probably just trying figure out how he feels about you which could take a while with that thick head of his"

Luffy laughed and a scraping noise was heard as he stood up from his chair. Zoro stepped back from the door, ready face Luffy as he walked out. The room was silent for a few seconds and Zoro wondered what was gong on, but after a while he heard a quiet "Thanks Sanji" and the boy started to make his way towards the door. Zoro braced himself.

"Oh and Luffy?"

"Yeah?"

"DON'T COME INTO MY KITCHEN WITHOUT ASKING FIRST!"

And that was all the warning he got before Luffy came flying out of the galley and ploughed straight into him, sending them both flying towards the mast before connecting with a sickening crunch.

Sanji looked out after them and smirked after seeing what had happened. He hadn't known that Zoro was there, but this was perfect. Now they _had _to talk. And with that he retreated back to the crew's unfinished breakfast.

"Ow" Luffy muttered as he rubbed his head where he hit the mast, he then turned and spotted the man he was lying on "Zoro!" he cried happily, hugging him

Zoro blushed slightly, not really expecting that reaction from Luffy after what he had just heard in the galley.

"Uh … hi Luffy"

"Where have you been Zoro?" Luffy asked suddenly

Zoro was amazed that the boy was showing no anger or resentment towards him after he had ignored him for the past two days, but he supposed that that just wasn't Luffy. The boy would never really hold a grudge against his friends.

"I just needed some time to sort some stuff out" he replied quietly "Luffy … did you mean what you said when you woke up?"

"Huh?" Luffy replied "Oh! Yeah! It really was real with that old woman and the sickness and stuff with all of the-"

"No Luffy" Zoro interrupted "I meant … I meant when you said that you … you know"

Luffy cocked his head to the side. Obviously he didn't.

"You know … when you say that you … love me"

"Oh yeah!" Luffy cried, now even happier, wrapping his arms around Zoro's neck and rubbing his cheek against his chest "Luffy loves his Zoro"

Zoro couldn't help but blush at the affection and he decided to take the plunge. He grabbed Luffy's chin and lifting the boys face to his he whispered.

"Zoro loved Luffy too"

The reaction was instant. The boy in his lap, leapt to his feet with a grin as bright as the sun and a scream of joy as he grabbed onto Zoro's hands and bounced around him. Sanji watched leaning on the galley door frame with a smirk in place and the rest of the crew grinned as they watched Luffy drag Zoro around the ship screaming "Zoro loves Luffy!" at the top of his lungs.

The swordsman had turned quite a nice shade or red as he was pulled around by his captain and couldn't help but smile. Luffy finally let go of him and jumped onto the side of the railing, intent on screaming how much Zoro loved him to the world … that was until he slipped and fell overboard.

Zoro shook his head, kicking off his shoes and pulling off his swords before diving in with a grin firmly in place. It was good to know that nothing would change.

**Okay, that's it done now. I hope you enjoyed reading. Comments are always welcome.**


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